Hi - this is Srinivasan Sampathkumar from Triplicane. I have a passion for Marine Insurance, Cricket and of course Temples especially Thiruvallikkeni.
From Sept 2009, I am posting my thoughts in this blog ; From July 2010, my postings on Temples & Tamil are on my other blog titled "Kairavini Karayinile " (www.tamil.sampspeak.in)
Request you to keep providing your feedback which will help me improve and present better.

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Rhinos are attractive ~
some say they are on the brink of extinction !the white rhino is a major conservation success
story, having been brought back from the very brink of extinction. But the
current surge in poaching for their horns, particularly in South Africa, has
seen record numbers killed in recent years. Urgent efforts are now underway to
stop the poaching and end the illegal trade.
Poaching threatens the existence of many animals ! – it is human greed.

Children are
gleeful when they see wild animals ! –
villagers are happy visiting Zoos, may
not be the same with city man, who is addicted to gadgets and perhaps would be
interested in playing Zoo game rather than see them. The sprawling Vandalur attracts many visitors
– and many were disappointed as it remained closed during Pongal, having not
recovered from the devastation of Cyclone Vardah. While the purpose of Zoo is different, the animals
do face different types of trouble from the visitors ! – and also because they
are kept as exhibits, in not so natural surroundings ! ~ but this is sad ! and not expected to
happen at a so called protected environment is the subject matter of this post.

Away at El Salvador, the
gruesome killing of Gustavito, an adored hippo, attacked and badly mauled with
metal bars and knives shocked even the Nation, where killings are so high. Close on its heels, came the news of a group of visitors at a Tunisia zoo stoning a
crocodile to death. The municipality of Tunis posted gory pictures on Facebook
of the dead animal’s head next to what appeared to be a bloodied paving slab
and another large rock. “A group of visitors to the zoo threw stones at the
head of a crocodile, causing internal haemorrhage that killed it,” it said. The
municipality said the act at the Belvedere Zoo in central Tunis was “savage
behaviour”.

The Château of Thoiry is a
150-hectare (370-acre) castle, zoo and botanical garden that was opened to the
public in 1965 in the village of Thoiry, France, with gardens and a zoological
park. Located about 30 miles (48 km) due west of Paris, it is best visited by
automobile to take advantage of the drive-through lane. It has assorted range of animals, many of
which roam freely along an 8-kilometre
(5.0 mi) road through the 240-acre (97 ha) "African Reserve". Others
can be viewed in a walk-through zoo. Animals in the reserve include
Przewalski's horse, bears, European and American bison, wildebeest, greater and
lesser kudu, dromedary camels, zebras, giraffes, rhinos, hippos, eland, Watusi
cattle, and three elephants..

One rhino roaming there
was less fortunate. It is reported that
poachers forced their way into the French zoo and killed a southern white
rhinoceros named Vince, sawing off one of his horns before fleeing into the
night. The Thoiry Zoo said police are investigating the killing of the
4-year-old animal. The poachers remain at large.

"It is extremely
shocking what just happened," zoo director Thierry Duguet told France's 20
Minutes newspaper. "An act of such violence, never before seen in Europe. "Duguet
told The Associated Press that Vince was shot three times in the head. The
poachers likely used a chainsaw to cut off one of the horns, according to a
statement from the zoo; "his second horn was only partially cut, which
suggests that the criminals were disturbed or that their equipment proved
defective."

This odious act was
perpetrated despite the presence of five members of the zoo staff living on
site and surveillance cameras. Despite bans by international convention and
French law, the illegal sale of rhino horns persists because of demand for use
in traditional Asian medicine. A kilogram of rhino horn sold on the black
market for nearly $54,000 in 2015, according to the zoo.Southern white rhinos
like Vince were nearly extinct in the late 19th century, according to the WWF.
Protection efforts were largely successful, with some 20,000 animals in
protected areas and private game reserves — in fact, they're the "only
rhinos that are not endangered."But there's been a major uptick in
poaching. "Hundreds of white rhinos have been killed annually in recent
years," the WWF says. "They are particularly vulnerable to hunting,
because they are relatively unaggressive."

Vince was born at a zoo in
the Netherlands, and had been living at Thoiry Zoo since 2015. In the aftermath
of the attack, Thoiry is warning other European zoos. A spokesperson said - It's
not easy to kill a rhino weighing several tonnes just like that. It's a job for
professionals."

Sad that an animal sought
to be seen in an protective environment was poached amidst disturbing reports
that the criminals had also planned to steal the horns of the two other white
rhinos, five-year-old Bruno and 37-year-old Gracie. Both animals are said to be
safe and healthy. While many
communicated their anguish on the gruesome killing, some commented it to be the
price of inviting immigrants in to Societies, feeding them, allowing them to
bring their habits with them.